(Reuters) - A Virginia medical examiner has identified human remains found last week as those of missing University of Virginia student Hannah Graham, police said on Friday.
Searchers discovered the remains on Oct. 18 on abandoned property near Charlottesville, Virginia, site of the university campus. Graham, a sophomore, was last seen on Sept. 13, and a Charlottesville man, Jesse Matthew Jr., has been charged in her disappearance.
The Medical Examiner's Office in Richmond "has confirmed that these are the remains of Hannah Graham, 18, of Fairfax, Va.," the Albemarle County Police Department said in a statement.
"Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Graham family and Hannah’s friends during this incredibly difficult time."
Matthew, 32, was also charged this week with a 2005 sexual assault in Fairfax. Virginia State Police have said forensic evidence also links Matthew to Morgan Harrington, a Virginia Tech student who disappeared after leaving a Charlottesville concert in October 2009. Her body was discovered in 2010.
That's incredibly sad. I mean, I am glad the family now knows what has happened to her and won't spend their lives looking for their deceased daughter. But, this is incredibly sad.
